Understand
by FinntheHuman1697
Summary: Breaking out of Terminus, Daryl meets up with someone he never thought he'd see again: Carol. But while he is just happy to see her, she has some concerns about his relationship with Rick. She brings up some good points, but does he even want to believe her? Rick is his brother... right? CARYL all the way, guys. Warning you now, there's some Rickyl tension up in here. R&R please!
1. Chapter 1

**Understand**

**By FinntheHuman1697**

**Disclaimer: *sigh* No, I do not own The Walking Dead... but if I did, things would be a lot different... that's all I'm going to say.**

**A/N: Hello everybody! Yes, I'm back, after a long, long, LONG year of school and drama and whatever I am writing again because with all the shit that has happened in season 4 (seriously, don't even get me started) I couldn't just let it slide without releasing some form of my opinion other than some pretty intense rant sessions with Axelrocks. Speaking of them, I would like to give a huge thank you to Axelrocks who is not only my partner in writing/crime, but has also encouraged me to write again. Thanks dude! Also, I know that a lot of people here have maybe lost faith in Caryl because of this past season, but never lose faith! Season five is just around the corner, so we have to stay strong, Carylers!**

**Here we go again... Caryl on everybody!**

**-Understand-**

He couldn't believe how fast everything happened. One minute, he was in the train car with Rick and Glenn and everybody trying to create some type of plan that would get them all out of Terminus alive and the next he was running for his life through the forest following Carol to God knows where. And for the life of him, he couldn't understand how it happened, _again_.

He couldn't fuckin' _believe _that after all the shit that they went through, they got separated again. Looking back, he thinks that maybe they could have handled it better...

**-Understand-**

"_Okay, is everybody set on the plan?" _

_Rick scanned the group of people that all seemed to be relying on his leadership at the moment. With weary eyes, everybody nodded and looked around to see if anybody would protest. Nobody did, but that only meant that nobody had a better idea. Rick, seeming to sense this, spoke up._

"_Look, I know this isn't ideal, but this is the only option we have right now. If we all work together, if we all stick to the plan then I know we can make it out of here. You just have to trust me,'kay?"_

_With that everybody seemed to look a little more secure about the plan._

"_Good, now let's go over this one more time. Now, we know that they can't just leave us here to die, so at some point they are going to have to bring us food or water or even just open the door to take us out to do whatever they want or have planned to do with us." Rick stopped, trying to gather his thoughts and make sense of all this bullshit they were caught in, because it just seemed unreal that their lives consisted of slipping from one disaster to the next. Closing his eyes for a moment, Rick brought himself back together and spoke again._

"_So, when that happens, we have to all be gathered around the door. Not too close that they see us, but close enough so that we can all force our way out. If they only call one of us, probably me or Daryl, then we will get in a group behind that person. Once they open the door enough, we all force it open more and jump out and from there, we start fighting. No doubt there is gonna be a lot of gunshots, so I advise all of you to go after somebody with a gun and take it from them. We have to get the upper hand. Once you have that gun, you kill as many of the people from Terminus as possible. Try to help each other out if you can, but if you see an out, __**take it**__. We will rendezvous at the train tracks at the south entrance of the build-" _

"_I know a place." Sasha said. Everybody's head swung over towards her where she stood by Bob and Maggie. _

"_Down the tracks a ways there is a big building, and it's empty. It should still be... I was gonna, um, stay there, but then Bob and Maggie... and I... look I just know that it's there, and we can use it." With an anxious look on her face she motioned her head back to Rick to take the attention off of herself. "That okay, Rick?"_

_Rick slowly nodded his head, "anywhere away from here is good enough for me. So, once you find an escape route, get the hell outta here and get to that building. What does it look like?"_

"_It's a big red brick building." Sasha spoke up, "There are a lot of cars around it... And an ice cream truck too, I think. Maggie and Bob know what it looks like..."Maggie and Bob nodded in agreement._

"_Sounds good. 'Kay, if and when you guys get out, follow the tracks to the red brick building. Once you get there, set up camp, and stay there. Three days, four max. After four days if nothing bad happens then you have to decide if you want to move on or not. Now I'll ask again..."Rick looked up at the group he had come so close to in the past year._

"_Is everybody set on this plan?"_

**-Understand-**

"Daryl?"

He heard her, the voice he had been missing since the day she never came back. The day he had lost her, _again_, seemed so far away because of everything that had happened. Vaguely, Daryl heard that the voice kept calling his name, softly, but firmer each time. He slowly looked up to make eye contact with the same blue eyes that had haunted him ever since the day they lost the prison as he grumbled out a "_what_" from deep in his chest.

Carol met his hard gaze head on and immediately replied, "Daryl, we have to decide what to do. We lost them, but probably not for long. WE have to decide what we are going to do, where we are going to go... we could just wander and see what happens, but I'd rather not do that. Any suggestions?"

Daryl thought back again to the conversation in the train car. _'Big red brick building... empty... cars around it... __**away from here**__...' _Daryl cleared his throat and spoke in a gravelly voice, "I, uh, I know a place. It's by these train tracks-"

Carol looked at him questioningly, "You went on the tracks?"

"Uh, yeah." Daryl said. "We all did, I think. But while we were in the car Sasha told us 'bout this place on the tracks. It was down the road, she said. I don't know how far, but that was the plan that Rick made. I think its worth'a shot." He stared wearily at her waiting to see if she would accept it.

Carol looked down and took a moment to mull it over in her mind, then looked up at him again and said, "Rick suggested that, huh?" Daryl nodded. "Well, I guess it couldn't hurt. Let's just make camp here for the night and tomorrow morning we can go for it. You can go hunt if you want, I'm gonna set up the perimeter. Meet back in an hour?"

Daryl let out a sound of acknowledgement, grabbed his crossbow, and left to get dinner for the pair. He liked the woods better anyway.

**-Understand-**

After splitting a rabbit in two for dinner, Daryl and Carol bedded down around the fire and tried to go to sleep. Every once in a while, he would look over at her to make sure she was still there. That she hadn't left him again. That he hadn't imagined her. And for the first time since he'd known her, the silence between them wasn't comfortable and easy, it was forced and awkward.

It was something he'd never experienced with her before, not even when he came back with Merle. The more he thought about it the more it bothered him, pissed him off, even, because it had _never _been like that between them.

As he analyzed it to no end, he heard her saying something to him but didn't pick it up. "Hm? He mumbled with hopes that she would repeat herself.

"Um, I was just asking how everything has been with you guys. Tyreese told me all that happened with the prison. I'm... I' m sorry about what happened to Hershel, and I know that doesn't fix it, though. But, uh, what-what happened with you?" she said hesitantly.

Daryl sighed and closed his eyes. "Why the hell do you care?"

Carol looked over at his questioningly, "What do you mean what do I care? Of course I care! But if you want to be an ass about it then whatever. Go ahead and keep it all to yourself. Because that worked out so well before..."

Daryl winced at her words. He didn't mean to be an ass, especially not to her, but so much shit had happened in such a small amount of time that being the Dixon that he was, he didn't know how to process all of it. He sat up, sighing and turned towards her but not looking in her direction.

"A lotta shit happened when the prison fell. We all got split up, nobody knew where to go. Thinkin' back, we probably should'a worked out an escape plan, but whatever. Anyway, I found Beth as I was leavin' and we got the hell outta there. I didn't know what ta do, where ta go... it was hell. A million times worse than the farm 'cause we knew about the losses, but at the same time, we didn't know jack shit about what to do, or where to go, or... just anything, really..."

Daryl continued to speak about all of the hardships he had faced in the weeks since the prison. As he went on and on about the funeral home, setting the house on fire, the group he met up with, claiming, Rick, Carl, Terminus... revealing more and more things every minute, then every other minute remembering little details that meant the world to him he saw how much her face changed. Sadness, anger, understanding, pain, even laughter, when it was appropriate.

And when he started he couldn't stop. With each word that tumbled out of his mouth he felt the weight he didn't even know was there being lifted from his shoulders. He found that the more he revealed, the more he shared with her, his _best friend_, the easier he could breathe. Daryl realized that he missed this; he missed _her_ and the ease that just her presence brought to him.

He didn't remember falling asleep. He only remembered the calm he felt, if only for a moment.

**-Understand-**

_Gunfire. Chaos. Blood everywhere. That was all he could see from where he stood in the Terminus courtyard. _

_It took days after they created the plan for the Terminus people to actually open the door. They sent in food through a hole in the corner, but it could only be opened from the outside, so that option was thrown out the window. But when they heard conversation outside with people that sounded familiar but couldn't place, they all had the same idea. _

_They got in their positions, ready for the leader but instead were met with yelling and fists connecting with flesh outside the car. They could only hear the muffled sound of a battle, but when somebody started shooting, there was commotion at the door. Everybody in the car was startled, but quickly composed themselves and became ready fight for their lives. The handle continued to shake along with the fight outside, and as the door opened and the crew went on the offensive, they were greeted by the face of Tyreese, the very last person in the world they expected. _

_Sasha cried out for her brother and ran toward him but Bob held her back, remembering that only a few feet away a battle was ensuing._

"_COME ON" Tyreese yelled at them. "YOU GUYS GOTTA GET OUT'VE HERE, NOW!" With that he tossed a few knives and guns into the car and them scrambled to obtain a weapon. Their plan had a kink in it now, not starting how they believed it would, but they immediately adjusted and burst out of the car ready to fight._

_Daryl, who was unable to get a weapon, immediately looked around for a guy with a gun, but instead saw his beloved crossbow sitting on a table across the yard. Deciding it was worth the risk, he bolted across punching and shoving his way along and the minute he grabbed his bow, shot it right into the forehead of one of the 'Termites'. _

_Once he was sure he wouldn't come back, Daryl went back to the fight and saw Carol and Tyreese fighting alongside everybody else. As relieved/shocked as he was, he had to go back on the attack. He reloaded his bow and went straight for a man that was attacking Glenn. _

_Before he knew it, he found himself cornered by two guys and one girl, each having some kind of knife or baseball bat. He saw Carl who had just shot a man in his late 20's, it looked like, and finally, he saw Rick between the two looking back and forth. _

"_RICK! RICK GET OVER HERE, HELP ME, PLEASE!" Daryl boomed. He was going back and forth between watching the attacking Termites and Rick. He had only two arrows left, no knife, and not a gun for at least 10 feet. Just as he thought he was done for, somebody came up and like a ninja, quickly and quietly disposed of all three of his attackers. _

_As they dropped to the floor Daryl looked up to thank Rick, sure that his brother would help him in his one time of need. But when he looked up, he saw Carol yelling at him and making big gestures towards a brick wall. He tried to focus in on her words, but only saw out of the corner of his eye Rick running away from the fighting with Carl and not looking back, and some of the group scattering. It hurt for a second, but before he could address it he himself was being dragged along by Carol away from the smoke and yelling and bloodshed to the wall, where small hole was dug out of the wall, so they crawled through the small tunnel and immediately ran off into the woods with no direction or plan of action._

_From there it was a blur of trees, walkers, and running for his life. On his right arm he felt a hand seize him and before he knew it, he was screaming._

**-Understand-**

He woke up that morning to being shaken and yelled at by Carol and from what he could tell, it was early morning, just after dawn. He quickly looked around and took in his surroundings, finally setting on Carol and being calmed by her bright blue eyes that held concern for him, at the moment.

Breathing in her scent, Daryl began to calm down, his breathing evening out and he began to actually register what was going on around him. He screwed his eyes shut and slowly breathed in, then gave a big exhale and opened his eyes to once again, see her staring at him, a little less freaked out and saying soothing words to calm him down.

"Daryl? Daryl can you hear me? Are you ok? What happened?!" Her barrage of questions didn't help, but he still tried his best to collect himself. He didn't want to tell her what he dreamed, because of all the nightmares he's had over the years, this one was one of the worst. Maybe because it was so damn _real_, that he couldn't believe that it actually happened. It wasn't even a dream, it was a flashback.

He looked up and was angered that Carol had to see him like that. _After all the shit that's gone down you probably scared her, you dick. _He just bolted up from his spot on the ground and she shifted away from him with a confused facial expression. It took her a second to understand what was going on but when she did, she slowly stood up and chuckled while shaking her head, mumbling something to herself.

Before he could say anything, she held up her hand, almost anticipating his response and said, "Don't Daryl. Don't worry about it. Just be ready in ten minutes, we are going to look for the tracks and go for the building. If you need me, which you probably won't, I'll be over there."

Carol walked off to her area and quickly packed up her bag. She strode off into the woods, probably to do her 'business', so he just got his crossbow together and sat waiting for her to return. When she came back a little while later, she just swiped up her bag and mumbled a quick "let's go" and before he knew it she was on her way and he was quickly scrambling to catch up to her.

They walked for hours, and there wasn't a minute that went by where Daryl wasn't watching Carol. After not seeing her for so long, he didn't want to take her for granted ever again, no matter what she'd done. He didn't have time to ask her about Karen and David, and right now, he didn't want to. He just wanted to be here with her. But he did see that she was stewing over something, and by the look on her face, it was important. So when they stopped for a 'lunch break', he just had to ask.

"What tha' hell you thinkin' so damn hard about? If you're worried about the others, I'm sure they're fine. We'll find 'em when we get to tha buildin'." He stared at her again, waiting to see if that would put her at ease, if only a little bit. But the wheels kept turning.

"No, that's... that's not it Daryl" And that was all she said before she went off again.

"Hey!" Daryl called. "If that ain't it, then what the hell's wrong with ya? Ya haven't been this damn quiet in a long time."

Carol turned around and stared him in the eye and said, "You won't like what I have to say, Daryl."

"Oh shit, well now I have ta know... C'mon woman, spill."

Carol seemed to be thinking about it, actually thinking about it so with one more nudge, she opened her mouth to talk again.

"It's about Rick."

Daryl snorted. "What 'bout Rick? Look, I know that you're pissed 'bout him leavin' you, but I'm gonna talk ta him about that when we meet back up with everybody at tha' building. I promise. Imma make it right."

Carol just shook her head. "No Daryl I'm not mad about what Rick did to me, not anymore. It's about what Rick did to _you._"

Daryl stood there, confused at her words. "What do you mean, what he did ta me? He didn't do shit ta me."

Carol threw up her hands, "EXACTLY Daryl! That's exactly it! He did nothing for you! You were in trouble, on your last legs, _cornered by three people _and Rick still went after Carl!"

"Carl was in trouble too... he was fightin' off a dude an' he needed help an'-"

"NO Daryl!" Carol cut him off harshly and brought her hands up to rake through her hair. She stared at him intently and spoke again, "Carl was fine! You should know by now that Carl is able to fight for himself. Carl was _fine..._ How do I know? Because I WAS THE ONE that had to help you when Rick went off with Carl! _I saved you. _He didn't even give you a second look Daryl! He had no concern for your safety... He saw an out and he took it."

Daryl just shook his head at her, trying not to believe her words. "Uh-uh. That's his son. He had ta help him. And... there was a lot goin' on, and..."

Carol pointed at him as if she had caught him in a lie. "There! That's exactly it! If Rick was so 'in the right' then you wouldn't be stuttering! You _know _that I'm right, but you won't admit it, so you are stumbling through your excuses for him. He's not here with you, I AM and you are _still defending him!_ I'm telling you right now, he wouldn't have made the same sacrifice for you that you have made for him so many times in the past. I know it. You told me last night how you practically gave yourself to the guy that led your 'claim group' or whatever it was just so that he wouldn't get hurt. You sacrifice yourself for him, time and time again, and he just takes it for granted. He takes _you _for granted."

Daryl shook his head as he quickly said "No. No, Rick woulda helped. Rick would sacrifice himself for me just like I would for him. I know he would. We are broth-"

Before he could finish the word Carol slapped Daryl's cheek. Not terribly hard, but harder than he ever thought possible for her. His entire head snapped to the side simply from the _shock _that he felt at the fact that one of his best friends had stricken him and slowly turned his head back towards her, his jaw set firmly and ready to explode.

However, as soon as he made eye contact with her, he saw too many things in her eyes. He saw anger. He saw pain. He saw desperation. He saw _affection._

But what surprised him the most were the desperate tears that gathered in her normally crystal blue eyes which were now clouded over with a hurricane of emotion. He waited for her to say something because he _knew _that there was no way she was going to do _that_ and then not say anything.

Carol inhaled a large breath and said in the most pleading voice possible, "Daryl,_ PLEASE_. Please see this the way it is. You may think that Rick would risk his life for you or sacrifice himself, but unless you are 14 years old with a sheriff hat, half of Ricks blood and a bad attitude then he's not gonna to do shit. He would only do that for Carl! He's just been stringing you along because he and everybody else knew that if you left him he would be nothing! I meant what I said at the fire that night after we lost the farm. He'll just pull you down. _You don't need him_. You _do _deserve better. Oh, what I wouldn't give for you to see that. Please Daryl, please just open your eyes and see what you've been denying for way too long. Understand that Rick can't be that figure for anybody besides Carl because _he doesn't want to be_. Understand that Rick hasn't been ok in a good long while... Understand... Understand that he doesn't love you the way you deserve."

Carol exhaled sharply and looked down mustering up the courage to say what _she_ had been trying to deny for years.

"Daryl, understand that I want to do that for you. Understand that _I'm_ the one that would sacrifice myself for you. Understand that _I love you_ how you deserve. Please."

Daryl just stared back at her, as if simply by the sheer force of his will he could stop her tears. Now, all at once, the slap made sense. The harshness of her words, the razor sharpness of her voice and the anger and hurt in her eyes. "Pookie" seemed like a million years ago. And in that moment, the questions arose like bile in his throat: Was Rick really a fake? Was he just another Merle for him to blindly worship? Was Carol the _only_ one?

Could he ever truly understand?

Did he even know who he was anymore?

Did he even _want_ to. . . .

**And there you go! *exhales* whew! That was crazy, but I hope you guys liked it! Don't be afraid to drop a review my way if you liked it and follow/favorite because I'm going to be writing a lot more coming soon... I have more of this planned out, as well as a couple more one-shots up my sleeve, and a multi-chapter fic... If you guys want more I'd be happy to continue! **

**Good day my fellow Carylers!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Do I own this? Do I? DO I?! Haha nope**

**A/N: OH MY GOB YOU GUYS thank you all so flippin' much for all the support *dies*... I'm glad to hear that you guys liked it so much! So, by (semi)popular demand, here is the part two (which is kind of a filler chapter because the really intense shit is after this)! **

**Caryl on everybody!**

**-Understand-**

Silence. Fifteen minutes of the loudest silence he had ever encountered and neither of them had made a sound. They only breathed, but even that was barely audible. All he could hear was the blood pumping in his ears.

A majority of that time Daryl spent just staring at his crossbow. His hands twitched every few seconds because all he wanted to do was shoot something, _anything_ to take his mind off of this mess. Once in a while he would look up at Carol and see that while the tears were gone; her troubled facial expression was not.

She looked dazed and focused all at the same time. It confused him, but before he had time to think about it, his mind made him remember what she had said not to long ago.

_He's just stringing you along..._

_You don't need him..._

_**I love you how you deserve.**_

Every time he looked at her, he couldn't help but think of that last line. If he hadn't have been there, in the moment, then he would never have believed that she felt that way, much less that she had said it out loud. He looked at her one last time and made sure that she had her weapon and scanned around to make sure there were no walkers. When he was sure it was relatively safe, he broke the silence.

"I uh..." Her head snapped up to look at him, surprised that he had been the first to speak. "I'm gonna go an' get us some food..."

He shifted nervously from foot to foot and saw that she slowly nodded her head, but still hadn't spoken. He took that as an 'ok' and walked off without another word.

**-Understand-**

Apparently, the animals liked the silence about as much as he did, so there weren't very many in the woods. He managed to bag some squirrels, but they were all pretty small. Daryl sighed heavily staring at his kills, now angry that he had to go back to 'camp'. First he was angry that there was little to nothing to kill, then he was angry that his kills were practically skin and bones, and _now _he was angry that he had to go back to the deafening silence that had caused him to leave.

It took him only a few minutes to get back to Carol and saw that she had set up camp a little better. She had started a small fire on the tracks and created two piles of leaves for them to sit on and also had set up the noise-making perimeter. Before he had time to call out for her, she appeared from behind a tree and froze immediately when she saw him.

They stood awkwardly for a few minutes just staring at each other, almost challenging the other to give in and speak first. Fed up with the game, Daryl walked over to his 'seat' and got to work on cleaning the squirrel for their meal. From the corner of his eye he could see that Carol was fidgeting while thinking something over. He knew that she was also thinking about their conversation earlier, but as much as he wanted to ask if she was ok, the words did in his throat and he continued to clean the animals.

When Daryl was finished he walked over to Carol and wordlessly handed her the meat, nudging her leg to get her attention. She made a startled sound and looked up to find him smiling shyly down at her. It took her a minute to register the fact that he was handing her some kind of meat and reached out to take it. When she had it she offered him a smile as a thank you and went to look for some sticks to use to cook the meat.

When it got dark they both realized that a lot more time had passed than they realized. It seemed that they had both gotten lost in their own worlds and neither had paid attention to the sun as it grew dimmer in the sky. They both looked up at the same time and made a silent agreement to stay on the tracks for another night.

When Carol finished cooking their dinner she gave Daryl his stick and they both ate silently, each taking turns looking at the fire, their food, or each other. After Daryl finished, he tossed his stick into the fire and lay down on his back. He stared up at the night sky wishing that he could see the stars but sulked when the branches of the trees blocked his view. All he wanted was for something to distract him from the shit storm of thoughts going on inside his head. He just wanted things to go back to the way they were, when everything was easy. He missed the days where he had the luxury of hunting, talking with Rick, and being with Carol whenever he wanted.

He missed the prison. Never in his life did Daryl Dixon think he would miss a _prison._

Daryl thought back to the previous night where he was talking to Carol with ease about everything that he had done and/or witnessed since the downfall of the prison. He couldn't believe that he was laying here scared to say something because it would further fuck up the already fucked up situation that he was in. That they were both in...

But why was he even scared? What was he scared of? She said what she said for a reason... Carol would never hurt him. Carol only had his best interest at heart. _Yeah but that's what you thought about Rick and what got you here in the first damn place, you idiot._ Fed up with his internal battle, he threw himself up from his position on the floor and was ready to have it out with Carol, challenge her point of view, and_ demand_ that she explain herself, her thoughts, her accusations.

"Look Carol I-" Daryl stopped abruptly when he saw that she was lying on her back sleeping. His face immediately softened as he stared at her delicate form, and a part of him wondered how such a soft woman became the hard no-bullshit warrior he knew today.

Daryl sighed to himself and decided to leave that conversation for the next day, so he sat up against a tree and began to take watch.

**-Understand-**

The next morning the two powered through cold leftovers as well as the thick silence that still surrounded them. They quickly broke down their sad excuse for a camp and gathered their things so that they could start traveling. They had already burned enough daylight, and Daryl was anxious to get to the building, remembering that they would only stay there for three days.

Only small exchanged had occurred between Daryl and Carol. They had only talked to each other when Daryl had woken Carol up for watch a few hours ago. Even though he was bone tired, he had a restless sleep, tossing and turning all night, her words still invading his mind.

He wasn't meant for these kinds of things. He had gone forty-some-odd years avoiding feelings and emotions because they were messy and got in the way of survival.

But this woman. This, frustrating, meddling, bold, courageous, beautiful woman had slowly been breaking down the walls he had taken so long to build up. And he _let her._

He thinks some part of him wanted her to.

**-Understand-**

They traveled all day again, only stopping for short five minute breaks to rehydrate and gather themselves, then they would start again for their destination. Every few minutes Daryl would glance over at Carol trying to read her, but every time realized that he was about as good at that as he was talking about his feelings, so he stopped trying. But she did look a little more guarded than she had the day before.

After several hours of walking they stopped for a food break close to the edge of the trees. Daryl thought that they were close to the meet-up area. Carol found a granola bar in her bag and they both got a bar, which Daryl was grateful for because he didn't want to waste any more time hunting. As they got up to leave and Daryl was fixing his crossbow Carol shot up from her seat and cleared her throat.

"Look Daryl," Carol said in a firm voice, "I wanted to clear some stuff up about what I said yesterday. I can see that it has really thrown you off and I'm sorry for that. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings or if you are angry at me for criticizing Rick. It wasn't my intention to do that. But believe me when I say that I am **not** sorry for what I said." Carol sharply shook her head before she continued speaking.

"I just wanted to help you understand that you shouldn't hold Rick on such a high horse. You are a better man than he is-there's no question about it. But if hearing all those things made you angry or sad then that's my bad but just know that I'm not sorry for what I said. I meant it all. Even if you don't feel the same way. I just wanted you to know."

She stared into his eyes to prove her point and immediately Daryl knew that while she was talking about her harsh words towards Rick, she was also referring to her declaration to him about her feelings. He wanted to answer her because he had also been stewing over her words for the past day. Just as he opened his mouth to answer her both of their heads shot to an area on the edge of the trees where they heard commotion and whispers.

Before Daryl could raise his crossbow and Carol could unsheathe her knife, a loud and familiar voice rang out from behind the shrubbery.

"Daryl! Carol! Oh my God, I can't believe you guys are ok!"

**A/N: Aaaaaaand they have finally reached the rest of their group (technically). Who do you guys think it is? Just one more part to go everybody. Some pretty intense confrontations coming up... Thank you for reading and don't be afraid to drop a review my way:D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: After all the shit that went down at SDCC I don't think I even want to own TWD... UGHSDNFJANLGNONWRAVNN Ok I'm done... my bad. I don't own it. **

**A/N: And I'm back! No, I didn't forget about this story... completely. Haha kidding everybody, but this is getting out way earlier than planned as a gift to my good friend Axelrocks because we all need some Caryl right now. So please enjoy the next installment of Understand. (Also I lied about this being the last part of the story... but after this one, I promise it's the end) **

**Caryl on, everybody!**

**-Understand-**

_That little shit._ Daryl thought. _Always interruptin' during somethin' important. I can't believe this shit._ With an exasperated sigh he readjusted his crossbow and looked at Carol to see what she wanted to do. All he saw on her face was shock so he moved slowly toward the sound. Before he could do anything, Carol spoke up.

"Glenn?" She said with disbelief more than anything. "Glenn, is that you?"

Glenn shot out of the bushes and immediately tackled the two into a hug. He held it for a few seconds then pulled back but didn't let go. "I can't believe you guys are ok! Everything was so crazy at Terminus and I didn't know if you got out Daryl... And Carol where did you come from! I missed you SO much and so much has happened since you left- oh yeah about that what the hell happened? You didn't come back from that run and then we were attacked and-"

"Oh my God." Those three words caused Daryl and Carol to tense up and Glenn to spin around quickly to find the source of the interruption and locked eyes with it immediately.

"Rick, look! They're okay! Daryl made it out and Carol is with him, can you believe it?! This is awesome! I-" Glenn abruptly paused. "What's wrong? Are you ok?"

Glenn looked at Rick questioningly while Rick just stood there staring incredulously at the three. He kept opening and closing his mouth trying to muster up something to say but had not taken his eyes off the trio. Something about the look in his eyes made him seem like he had been caught red-handed in something, but neither of them knew what. Behind Rick stood Maggie, who was just as shocked to see Daryl and Carol.

Then Rick made a noise that nobody could make out so he cleared his throat and spoke. "How... How did you guys even- where... I don't-"

"Surprised to see us _brother_?" Daryl spat at him while also staring at him through narrowed eyes. The past two days had reared its ugly head in Daryl's mind once again, momentarily forgotten with Glenn's arrival.

"O-of course. I thought we were the only ones who made it out." Rick said looking down. Daryl scoffed but continued to glare at him.

"Um, is it just you guys? Did anybody else make it?" Carol asked in a low voice looking at Glenn.

Glenn, thrown by the unspoken hostility and tension in the air, looked back at Carol. "Uh, yeah... actually most of us did make it out. A couple of people aren't with us, but we don't know if they just aren't at the spot yet. Oh yeah! That reminds me... we have this place that we are kinda holed up in for a few days until we decide to move on. It's a red-"

"A red brick building, relatively abandoned, with an ice cream truck outside? I know, Daryl told me." Carol said, interrupting him.

"Oh, yes actually." Glenn said, surprised. "Maybe, um, we should all go back there. It's only a short walk away from here. We heard the noises and went to see what it was in case it was some people from our group. And we found you guys! So, let-let's go, there, to the place and we can get settled. I still can't believe it! The Atlanta group, still kickin'..." After that Glenn smirked and looked down.

"Let's go, guys." Glenn started walking to urge the others to follow, and after a moment, Carol looked around and followed him. Daryl immediately followed her, unwilling to let her out of his sight again, even if he was pissed off. At who, he didn't know, but now wasn't the time to think about it.

With a deep sigh Rick motioned to Maggie and they both slowly trailed behind the others, anxious about the long discussions that lie ahead.

**-Understand-**

After a couple hours of greetings, stories, and a handful of 'welcome back's, Rick began to notice something. Every time he would move to touch Daryl he would pull away or flinch. If he tried to talk to Daryl, or even say hi, he would receive a grunt or a glare or some kind of "fuck off" signal that threw him off. He knew that Daryl was angry at him. That much was obvious. But it couldn't be leftover feelings from Carol's banishment... right?

Just as he was thinking about it, Daryl had just walked past him and shoved his shoulder into Rick's back. Rick looked behind him in astonishment at Daryl, and at that moment, he decided that he had had enough.

Rick walked with purpose over to Daryl and tapped him on the shoulder and saw that he flinched. Daryl stiffened at the unwelcome touch and slowly turned around to glare at Rick, almost challenging him. Wordlessly, Rick motioned to an empty room in the building and walked in front of Daryl, hoping that he would know to follow him. When he didn't hear the hunter's telltale footsteps behind him, he went to the door frame and held up his arm to usher Daryl inside. Daryl entered the abandoned room with obvious hesitation and adjusted his crossbow on his shoulder. When Rick closed the door and looked at Daryl with raised eyebrows and with a sigh, Daryl perched his crossbow up against the wall and mumbled something from low in his throat.

Rick just continued to stare at him. "What'd you say?" He couldn't believe that those were the only words he had spoken to his best friend in the hours since they had been reunited.

"I said what the fuck do ya want from me?" Daryl growled at him.

Momentarily shocked by the outburst, Rick quickly regrouped, "Are you okay? Is there something wrong?" he said, genuinely confused and curious.

Daryl scoffed as a replacement for his reply.

Furrowing his brow, Rick decided to use a different approach. "Um, okay... How 'bout, uh, do you have a problem with me? Is it something I did for you to be so angry at me?"

Daryl just shook his head, "I don't know _brother, _why don't you tell me?"

Rick was shocked at the animosity that saturated his words. "What do you mean? Tell you what?"

Daryl just grabbed his crossbow and moved towards the door saying "You know what, forget it. I don't have tha time or patience ta do this shit with you. Why don't you ask Carl if he needs help wipin' his ass?" Once again, sarcasm was evident in his voice.

Rick, refusing to let him leave, body blocked the door and said with a little more anger in his voice, "No, you don't get to leave! We are gonna talk about this... And what the hell are you talkin' 'bout anyway?"

It was then that Daryl decided to let it all out, "You know what, you wanna do this right now? **FINE**." He roared, "Let's do this shit, Rick. How about you tell me why the fuck you just left, right in the middle of the damn battle, after I KNOW you heard me _yellin' for your help!_ I was backed into a corner with _three fuckin' people _attacking me. You didn't give me a second look, you just fuckin' bolted with your crazy ass son, who was doin' _just fine_ by himself, if ya don't remember. But even then, you left the rest of us to fend for ourselves and fight against those crazy bastards from Terminus. _YOU LEFT US FOR DEAD YOU SON OF A BITCH. _I would've given my _life_ to save you, and you left at the first opening you saw. _Brothers _don't do that kinda shit to each other. _Brothers_ help each other when they're in trouble. I thought we were family, Rick. I thought we were all family. But I guess blood does run thicker 'n water, doesn't it?"

At the end of his explosion, Rick was stupefied. He hadn't thought that anybody had seen him do that, much less that Daryl had been harboring such intense feelings of betrayal and resentment towards him. For minutes that felt like hours, Rick just opened and closed his mouth, trying to find the right words that would both calm Daryl down and explain the situation in a way that also begged for forgiveness. He felt as though he had been caught red handed, so he decided to do on the defensive.

"I... Daryl you don't understand I had no choice, I-I had to get him. He was against a huge guy and I couldn't leave him like that. He was in trouble and he needed me. I had to Daryl, you have to believe-!"

"DON'T PULL THAT SHIT WITH ME." Daryl yelled at him, "I _saw you,_ AND Carl for that matter. He was doin' just fine against that guy, who couldn'ta been more than 25 for your information, and you might as well have been twiddlin' your fuckin' thumbs while _we_ were fightin' for our lives. Do you know how I got out? Do you even _care?_"

Rick just nodded absentmindedly while saying, "Of course I do."

"Well, if you must know, _Carol_ helped me. She got all three of those motherfuckers an' then helped get me out of there, while you had vanished inta thin fuckin' air. Carol. Remember her? The woman who almost singlehandedly raised _your _daughter and took care of her _again_ after the prison fell, despite tha fact that you dumped her off in the middle of shit-stain-nowhere because she was tryin' ta _help us_, keep us safe from the sickness?" Daryl questioned. He didn't want to bring up Carol's banishment, but he was in too deep now to not bring it up, now that he finally had time with Rick to get some answers.

Rick's eyes widened at the mention of Carol. He had avoided her the past few hours that the group had been together, not knowing what to say to ease the tension between the two, even between them and Maggie. He spoke up again, "I'm glad that she helped you, and my daughter, but I did what I thought was best. She killed one of our own, do I have to remind you? She brought that on herself, Daryl."

Daryl just chuckled humorlessly at Rick's reasoning. "So that's what your goin' with? So, the fact that _your_ son has killed several people in cold blood, or the fact that you ripped a dude's fuckin' throat with yer _teeth_ out mean nothing ta you? Because ta me those are just two sides to tha same coin, Rick."

He knew Daryl was still angered by his decision, but Rick's anger was now growing as well at the mention of his and Carl's actions. Straightening himself, he said "You know what; I don't have time for this shit. I'm not gonna stand here and have you compare me and my son to _her_." As Rick moved to open the door, Daryl quickly came up next to him and shut the barely opened door and got close to Rick's face keeping his arm up.

When they made eye contact, Daryl said in a low, almost threatening voice, "See, that's tha thing about this world, Rick. We got nothin' _but _time."

Rick pushed his chest up against Daryl's and said in an equally menacing voice, "I don't have to explain myself ta you. I do think of you as my brother, Daryl, but as far as she goes, I did what I THOUGHT WAS BEST. I'm sorry if that upsets you but I couldn't risk anybody at the prison going after her. Tyreese would have lost it, you _know_ that."

Daryl just pushed Rick away and said, "Carol 'n Tyreese was travelin' together before they helped us at Terminus and she's still alive, so how 'bout you try again."

Rick let out a heavy breath and continued to glare at Daryl. He was out of things to say, out of options. Daryl was completely destroying all of his reasoning, and he felt cornered. After a few minutes of silence, Rick still couldn't create a new defense so Daryl just grabbed his crossbow and shoved him aside roughly before throwing the door open.

The second he did most of the group scrambled away from the door and he realized that they had all been listening to their argument. Nobody looked up at him, but Carl at least had the decency to look contrite as he sat in the corner with his sister. He didn't dare look up as Daryl stormed across the room over to Carol, who was trying to organize things for dinner. Even though she didn't show it, he knew she had also heard what had transpired between him and Rick. He quickly stomped over to her and nudged her leg with his foot. She immediately looked up to meet his eyes, and he noticed that she also had an array of emotions stirring around in her beautiful azure eyes.

"Let's go."

That was all he growled before he walked off (he didn't mean to say it like that, but he couldn't help it), not even waiting to see if she would follow him, because he knew without a doubt that she would. She always did, and she always would. He loved that he could rely on her like that, but also realized that not only did he understand how much he needed her, buty how much he took her presence for granted.

Daryl continued to quickly stomp down the steps and out the door, hearing Carol's quiet steps not far behind him. When he was out the door, he looked around, searching for a place nearby that he could escape with her. He needed to talk to her, be around her without anybody else because only she could talk him down from this. Every second that passed he replayed Rick's words getting angry at each and every detail. His reasoning, the lies he so easily told, even the _tone_ in which he spoke pissed Daryl off more and more. He felt Carol come up right behind him and immediately he began to calm down, soothed instantly be her physical presence. With a deep sigh he walked forward across the train tracks and into the forest and she continued to follow him silently.

When they had walked for about ten minutes, his steps slowed and he abruptly stopped, deciding they were far enough. He readjusted his crossbow and turned around to face her. Daryl slowly raised his eyes to meet hers, and saw that her stance was slightly defensive. Briefly he thought that she believed that he brought her out there to yell at her or blame her, but he didn't think much of it because _he _knew it wasn't true. He walked over to her, step by step closing the four foot gap between them.

When he was less than a foot away, he stopped and looked down at her hands and reached out to take her delicate but strong left hand in his. He didn't dare move anything else; he just gently ran the calloused pad of his thumb back and forth across the top or her knuckles. He saw from the corner of his eye that she carefully raised her free hand to lightly brush aside his bangs.

In that moment, Daryl realized how amazingly intimate this moment was. It scared him, momentarily, but he pushed that aside and struggled to think of more ways that he could prolong this moment. _Their moment. _He tore his eyes away from the gentle gesture he had initiated and looked into her eyes, once again shocked at the intense and beautifully clear blue that swirled around in them.

When he barely heard her say something, he realized that he had spent too long just looking into her eyes and he had to answer her. He paused the movement of his thumb but continued to hold her hand, still not breaking the eye contact. He blinked a few times and mumbled a _Hm?_ as to urge her to speak again.

He felt her squeeze his hand slightly before she repeated in a gentle, almost angelic voice, "Are you okay?"

**A/N: AHHHHH I'M SO MEAN I'M SAVING THE CARYL CONFRONTATION FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER lol my bad guys but I have most of the next chapter written, so it should be posted in the next week. So, what do you think? Daryl finally gave Rick a piece (if not most) of his mind! Yeah! Anyway, don't be afraid to leave a review if you liked it, what you thought, whatevs... The final chapter is coming up, and then I have a few one shots that I have planned so look out for those! Thank you guys for reading, and have a good day!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Do I own this? Nah.**

**A/N: Here we are, in the final chapter of the story! See? I told you guys I wouldn't be gone long... although this chapter did fight me tooth and nail to write. But, I'm not going to ramble (although that has been known to be one of my specialties) so here you go! Enjoy everybody...**

**Caryl on!**

**-Understand-**

_Are you okay?_

It was such a simple question, but demanded a complicated answer, which was more than he was willing to give in that moment, even if it was Carol who was asking. He wasn't sure he was ready to talk about what had just happened with Rick, but he knew that he would never have a chance like this again, alone with her, away from the others, free to say whatever he wanted. So he decided to momentarily evade the subject.

"You were right." Daryl said and looked away. His voice was especially hoarse after his argument with Rick, and he would have given almost anything for a drink of water, but settled for gulping inaudibly.

Daryl felt her grip on his had tightened slightly and squeezed hers in response. He looked back up to her face briefly and saw a small sign of confusion. Quickly darting his eyes away, he cleared his still-scratchy throat and explained, "I said you were right... 'bout Rick. He-"

Suddenly, Daryl couldn't speak, didn't _want_ to speak, because he realized that if he did, then he would be forced to come to terms with the reality of his relationship with Rick.

The brother that he had once been so thankful for-because he had never really had the proper brother figure (or family figure for that part)-had let him down. He held him in such high regard because he never had anybody to do that with before. The bond that he had believed to be created with Rick was what held him together. He felt an undying devotion to it; to maintain it, protect it, so that he would never have to be alone again. He believed he had found everything he had been missing out on his entire life, and if he had to wait until the end of the world to get it then so be it.

All he can think is that he should have known it wouldn't last.

Then he felt Carol's hand slide up a few inches on his arm and gripped his forearm. She didn't know what to say, because while she was happy that he knew the truth about Rick, she was disconsolate at the sight in front of her. It was blatantly obvious to her that he was having vehement civil war in his mind, and she had trouble drumming up the words and courage she needed to soothe him-if only for a minute. She was at a loss for words and was desperate for something that would ease his pain, but also knew for a fact that if she said the wrong thing he would bolt. Carol knew she couldn't risk that happening; he needed this. He needed _her_. So at this moment, the best plan of action was to use small touches to silently urge him to admitting his dilemma. She kept her grip on his left forearm and waited patiently. She had waited years for him to open up to her, a couple more minutes couldn't hurt.

"Aren't you gonna say 'I told ya so' or some shit? Thought you would be the happiest ta hear it." Daryl said in a bitter tone.

Carol was slightly shocked at his words, but quickly remembered from previous encounters that antagonizing her was one of his favorite pastimes, so she quickly regrouped. "No Daryl, I'm not." She said softly, brow slightly furrowed.

Daryl just huffed and backed away from her and shook his head. "So what now?" he said, raising his voice slightly as he began to pace, "What the fuck happens now? How do I move on from tha fact that I've basically been _lied _to for tha past year and however many months? Am I supposed ta just drop him like nothin'? 'Cuz that's basically what he did to me... And I didn't even see it! I was so fuckin' _stupid_ to think that I could ever have somethin' like that!" With every word, rage and exasperation filled the space between them and as much as he wished he wasn't taking this out on Carol, he couldn't stop it. He was in too deep, too infuriated by the betrayal, bound too tightly by the friendship he had built with Rick and _her_ for that matter, to do anything but vent.

The worst part was that he knew she would take it. After years of being friends, Daryl saw a recurring pattern. He would keep a safe distance from her as to keep her from breaking down his walls (because the current situation he was in proved that letting people in always blew up in your face), then reveal little parts of himself to her in an effort to not become his brother. But that only lasted long enough for Daryl to get pissed at the next thing, big or small, which would cause him to release his rage on her, eventually pulling even further away than he had begun. Then he would stomp off, leaving her hurt and just a little more cracked than before while he contemplated the sheer depth of his idiocy. After hours of brooding, he would come crawling back, without as much as an apology, just a nod of his head and _poof_, they would be ok again (until he blew up again, at least). She would always accept him back with open arms, because she was too strong to be broken by anything he did. And he took that for granted.

He took her, and all the never-ending kindness and understanding she gave him, for granted.

It almost made him sick to his stomach.

In the middle of his epiphany, Daryl realized that he was doing it _again._ He was right in the middle of their cycle, in fact. _No more, _he thought, _no more'a this shit. She has her own things ta deal with, she don't need you dumping your problems on her. This ends now. _He looked up at her from a few feet away and saw that she was just staring at him with the same compassionate eyes she always had for him. _She deserves more from you, _his thoughts continued, _show her how you feel 'bout her. She can't read yer mind, dumbass, you gotta do somethin'. DO IT! _

That seemed to be all the push he needed, so he took in a deep breath and moved towards her quickly until they were nose to nose. Daryl saw that she was confused by his actions and maybe a little startled, but made no move to get away from him. She never did, even when she confronted him after he moved away at the farm and he was radiating anger and vexation. He paused for a few seconds, still waiting for the rejection that would never come. He looked into her eyes for confirmation, and instead she tilted her head up towards him ever so slightly. That was all he needed to go for it.

He pressed his lips to hers and she immediately responded. It was the gentlest kiss either of them had ever experienced, but he still felt like something was missing. After a little while, Carol brought her hands up to gently grip his hair and that was all it took to turn this gentle dance into a flurry of passion. His hands went straight to her waist as he pressed her to him completely and kissed her with everything he could. His tongue ran over the seam of her lips begging for entrance and she opened her mouth for him immediately and met his tongue with hers. The deeper their kisses became the more desperate Daryl was for more.

He forced his eyes open slightly and sought out the closest tree. Once he spotted one, he began to sync with each other, eventually making it to the tree. When Carol felt her back connect with the bark of the tree she gasped, unaware that this was his intention. Daryl took advantage of her surprise and delved his tongue deeper into her mouth and slide over hers as he slid his crossbow off his shoulder and dropped it next to them against the tree before he ran his hands up and down the sides of her body. He wasn't even aware that he was lifting her until she jumped slightly and wrapped her legs around his waist. There wasn't a part of her that wasn't touching him and in that moment he was hyper aware of how she felt against him. Before he could stop himself he slowly grinded into her, and they both knew of his raging erection that was teasing her center. It wasn't until she tilted her hips to accommodate for him that he stopped; only so that he wouldn't end their fun over his own record breaking dry spell and its' effects on his senses.

He couldn't _believe_ that he had been so damn stupid to let his own ridiculous insecurities hold him back from feeling _this_ for so long.

It wasn't until his lungs and throat began to burn that Daryl eventually pulled his mouth from hers. They both panted for a moment but instead of completely ending their heated make-out session, his eyes went to her throat and he knew he had to taste her. He moved his mouth down to her jaw and kissed a trail down to the hollow of her throat, kissing and nipping in various places until he encountered the pulse that was pounding in her carotid artery. He latched onto that spot and began to suck on it as he continued to grind into her. He felt her breathe hitch as she ran her hands up and down his back and over his shoulders. Daryl was on sensory overload- he knew he was too close to the edge to contain himself if he went any further, and he would be damned if they had their first time in the woods against a tree. She was worth more to him than that. She _deserved_ more.

He began to kiss his way back up her jaw and back to her mouth as he kissed her soundly once more before detaching his mouth from hers with a small grunt. Carol gave a small sound of disapproval at his absence and sighed, closing her eyes. When she felt his forehead rest against hers, she opened her eyes to find Daryl staring intently at her with something she couldn't place in his eyes.

Taking deep breaths she lowered her legs from his waist and stood against the tree but still held onto him because her legs were weak enough to the point that she seriously thought she would collapse from the sheer intensity that was Daryl Dixon and his mind-altering ability to kiss. Minutes passed and neither of them said anything as their breathing evened out. She knew that him being who _he_ is, she would have to address what just happened first. Test the waters to see if he was genuine in his sudden display of 'affection' or if he was just reacting to the still fresh loss of his other supposed best friend.

"What brought that on?" She questioned gently. She searched his eyes for any hint of an answer, any twinge of sincerity.

Daryl wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her close enough to him so that she felt compelled to raise her arms and put her hands on the top of his shoulders and rest her arms on top of his. Carol saw his Adam's apple move up and down and silently urged him to speak.

"It's... I think... I-I understand now." Daryl said in a low voice, surprising her. His voice was noticeably gentler than the usual scratchy drawl that she was used to.

"What do you-" she started and stopped just as soon as she started, remembering their conversation a few days prior. Daryl saw her eyes brighten considerably and smiled at her reaction. But then she pulled back a little and gave him a questioning look. "and the verdict is...?"

Daryl slowly moved his hand back and forth on her back and continued looking down, "I spent too long blindly following someone who had only his best interest in mind and even _longer_ hiding from tha one person who has always been there for me. You are tha one person that no matter what, has never turned away or hurt me. And I know that I never thanked ya for it, but it was always tha one thing I could always fall back on when everything else was shit. I'm sorry for all the shit I've put you through, but I'm gonna make it right, I swear. These kinds'a things have never been easy for me, and I might not say it as often as I should, but I need you ta know that _I _would sacrifice myself for you in tha blink of an eye, I will do anything to keep you safe, _happy,_ for any amount'a time we got left. And I may have been blind too it more often than not, but I finally understand that you love me..."

He brought his right hand up to rub his thumb over her cheek and looked back up into her eyes as he said what he had been holding in for too long.

"Because I love you too."

Daryl tilted his head slightly to the side and dipped his head to capture her lips with his. This kiss showed her the sincerity of his feelings, while also giving her back every second of the love she had selflessly given him since they had known each other.

A few amazing moments later Carol pulled back and slapped his chest lightly while teasing, "'Bout time you said it, I was beginning to think I'd have to wait forever."

Daryl chuckled at her statement and took her hand in his, "Not makin' you wait any longer, woman." He looked up and saw that the sunlight was beginning to fade. "Now c'mon, we should get back. I think I owe somebody back there a good ol' punch to the face." Daryl said triumphantly as he picked his crossbow back up before pulling her along. He heard Carol laugh at what she believed to be his attempt at a joke until he looked over his shoulder to give her a semi-serious look.

"Wait, you're kidding right?" Carol asked. Daryl just kept walking with her hand in his, guiding them out of the forest.

"Oh my God, you're serious."

**-Understand-**

As Daryl and Carol walked back up to the brick building, they didn't hear very much going on inside. They both looked at each other in confusion before Carol opened the door to head inside.

As they walked up the stairs to the third floor where their group was staying there was only small conversations taking place in hushed tones in different areas of the room. Daryl looked around and saw that Rick, Carl, and Judith were in one corner, Rick holding a cloth up to the side of his face. Across the room, Maggie was dabbing Glenn's knuckles with some type of wet cloth while everybody else stood around either watching the two parties or talking to each other about the exchange. Daryl and Carol walked over to Glenn and Maggie and Carol was the first to speak up.

"What the hell happened?" Carol said. Due to the silence of the room it sounded like she was in a tunnel with the way her voice echoed off the walls. Everybody, including Rick and Carl, looked up at her.

"Well," Maggie started. "It's interestin' actually..."

Glenn scoffed at her choice of words and interrupted her. "After Daryl's big fight with Rick I went in there to try and talk to him about what happened. He told me about everything that went down between you two at Terminus and why Carol never came back from the run you two went on, and I was so pissed off at him and what he did that I... well, I-"

"You punched him?" Daryl interjected. Glenn nodded in response and Daryl looked between Glenn and Rick. Before he could stop himself he let out a laugh from deep in his gut that startled almost everybody around them. All the conversations went silent as he continued to laugh, Judith eventually joining him, until Carol slapped his stomach.

"Don't laugh!" Carol scolded.

"Why tha fuck not?" Daryl answered. "I didn't have ta do anythin', Rick did it to himself. Thanks Glenn, I owe you one, man." Daryl clapped Glenn on the back and walked away towards Rick, leaving Carol to try and help Maggie attend to Glenn's wrist.

When Daryl reached Rick, he knelt down and tapped him on the shoulder. Rick turned around and it was all Daryl could do to not burst out into laughter again at the shiner forming on Rick's left eye. "Now," Daryl started, "I can already see that you got yours, so I'mma keep this short an' sweet. I am willing ta put this behind us, so long as you do two things for me. A, you drop the hero act and include all of us in on your decisions. You ain't a one man show no more. And B, you drop whatever chip you still got on your shoulder 'bout Carol. You owe her an apology for the shit hand you dealt her, and if'n after that you don't want ta be friends with her again, then just be civil an' leave her the fuck alone. And me too for that matter. Because I swear to God Rick if you try ta pull any'a that shit you did before, or keep blamin' her, or even be rude ta her, you gonna have ta answer ta me. And trust me, Dixon's ain't as nice the second time around. So just do those two things and we're good, alright?" Daryl didn't wait for Rick's answer before he continued. "Now, I believe you owe somebody" Daryl tilted his head towards Carol, "an apology, and a damn good one for all the shit she's done for you. Go on..."

Daryl didn't turn back around to see if Rick was following him as he got up and went back over to Carol. He just put a hand on her lower back and ushered her over to the center of the room where he knew Rick stood waiting for them. She looked over to him questioningly as he guided her along. She did a double take at Rick when she saw him, looking down at the floor before glancing up towards the pair as they stopped in front of him. Daryl's hand left the small of her back as he stood behind her.

Rick didn't need to be told twice. "Look Carol, I'm sorry about what I did to you. I understand now that you were just tryin' to help us. It was wrong of me to banish you without givin' you the benefit of the doubt or right to a fair trial or whatever." He heard Carol chuckle at his little law joke, but Rick cleared his throat and spoke again. "I will always be thankful to you 'n Tyreese for keeping my daughter safe for me. I'm sorry to you and Daryl for acting so selfishly these past few months. Can you forgive me?" He looked at Carol with a sincere but anxious look on his face as he willed her to forgive him, because he knew he couldn't live with so many people at him.

Carol eyed him wearily and took in his words. Such a turn-around from Rick so suddenly was not like him. She briefly wondered what the hell Daryl said to him to make him act like this. Turning towards said Dixon, she looked for confirmation and found it when he nodded slightly at her. She turned her head back towards Rick and blinked a few times before sticking her hand out to him. Rick took her hand wearily as he heard her speak.

"Apology accepted Rick. I'm not angry about it anymore; I just want to start fresh."

"Of course. Thank you so much Carol." Rick said. He let out a breath and let go of her hand and swept her up in a quick hug, but felt her tense up. He looked over her shoulder at Daryl who wore an angry look on his face while eyeing Rick. When Carol didn't hug him back, he pulled back a little and said, "Too soon?"

Before Carol could answer him, Daryl spoke up for her, "God damn right it's too soon. How 'bout you let go'a my woman before I make you." He growled.

Immediately Rick released Carol with a sheepish look on his face, wincing at how his facial movement pulled at his now bruising muscles. Carol was silent, momentarily stunned at what Daryl had just said, although he didn't waver. He just kept semi-glaring at Rick until he stepped away and went back towards Carl and Judith. The rest of the group was stunned silent having seen what just happened after all the commotion from earlier in the day.

Daryl moved around Carol to stand in front of her and adjusted his crossbow, waiting for her to say something.

"Did that really just happen?" Carol asked.

Daryl simply nodded. "Sure did. Now go on and make some dinner woman, we're hungry and Maggie needs help."

Carol, still slightly confused, just turned and went to help with dinner but stopped when Daryl reached his arm out and gave her a quick swat on her ass. She whipped her head around to glare at him.

He just looked right back at her and shrugged before saying, "And make it quick... I got plans for ya later..." And he walked away.

Her jaw fell, as did several others in the room and all she could think was that she 9nor anybody else) would ever _truly _understand the inner workings of a Dixon.

**A/N: There you have it everybody! The end of my first multi-chapter story... I hope you all liked reading it as much as I liked writing it, and I look forward to posting more before school starts back up. Also, don't forget to tell me what you thought about it, and check out my latest one shot, "You Made Me" in my profile! One final thank you to Axelrocks as well as all my readers, people who followed, favorite, etc. P.s. graeshires hope you liked Rick getting popped in the face, I worked it in as best I could! Nice request haha**


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